November 14, 2019 Celebrities / Contract / eSports / Labor & Employment / Litigation

Game On: FaZe Clan’s $20 Million Lawsuit Against eSports Gamer Will Continue

A federal judge will allow a $20 million contract lawsuit filed by FaZe Clan Inc. against a popular eSports star to proceed.

In May 2019, Fortnite player and social media celebrity, Turner Tenney, known to fans as “Tfue,” sued FaZe Clan, a popular eSports organization, in California state court. Tenney alleged that FaZe lured him and other gamers into “grossly oppressive, onerous and one-sided” contracts, allowing FaZe to make millions while Tenney earned a mere $60,000. He also filed a complaint with the California Labor …

July 25, 2019 Basketball / eSports

“NBA Last 90” Foreshadows the Potentially Lucrative Intersection of eSports and Sports Betting

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has, in many ways, led the way in navigating both the legal logistics of legalized sports betting and the growing industry of eSports, a recently popular form of competition using video games. The recent release of the first-ever NBA virtual sports betting game, NBA Last 90, conceivably foreshadows the future of how two of the most potentially lucrative sports-related industries could intertwine in a meaningful and profitable manner.

Since the 2018 Supreme Court decision of Murphy v. National Collegiate Athletic …

July 11, 2019 eSports / Litigation / NCAA

Former College Basketball Players Sue Fortnite Creators for Use of “Running Man” Dance

Jaylen Brantley and Jared Nickens, former college basketball players for the University of Maryland Terrapins, are suing Epic Games, along with game creators, over the use of the “Running Man” dance in the popular video game, Fortnite. In this game, players can unlock this Running Man dance for $5 to use for their own characters. The Running Man dance became popular on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2016 when Brantley and Nickens appeared on the show to perform the dance.

According to the Baltimore …

September 14, 2018 eSports / Fantasy Sports / Sports Betting

DraftKings Sues to Identify Cyber Attackers

DraftKings, Inc. has filed suit in Massachusetts federal court in an attempt to identify the individuals behind cyberattacks launched at the website.

DraftKings, with its business based in fantasy sports contests, claims to have suffered a 26 minute denial of service when the cyber assailants “overwhelmed” its servers on two separate occasions in an attempt to stifle business. Its complaint, filed under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, articulates, “The attack occurred because defendants intentionally sent thousands of packets of information or commands to plaintiff’s …

January 20, 2018 eSports / Soccer

MLS Joins eSports Phenomenon

On January 12, 2018, Major League Soccer (MLS) announced that it partnered with Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) to create an eSports league, eMLS. The league will feature the best EA Sports FIFA 18 players in the United States and Canada. eSports is a form of competitive video gaming where gamers participate in tournaments such as the International, the League of Legends World Championship, the Evolution Championship Series, and the Intel Extreme Masters, in order to win cash prizes.

Nineteen of the 23 MLS teams will …

July 18, 2017 eSports

Robert Kraft One of First to Tackle Ownership of New eSports League

Videogame maker Activision Blizzard Inc. announced on Wednesday, July 12, 2017, that seven international cities that will field teams for its upcoming Overwatch League, with buyers including New England Patriots owner, Robert Kraft, and chief operating officer for the New York Mets, Jeff Wilpon. Kraft will have ownership rights to a Boston-based team, and Wilpon will help field a team based in New York. Other cities will include Los Angeles, Miami-Orlando, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Seoul.

The buy-in price for Los Angeles-based Immortals and …

June 21, 2017 eSports

eSports Multibillion Dollar Question

As one of the fastest growing industries today, eSports is starting to garner the attention of not just investors, but also gamblers. The interest in eSports from sports bettors is predictable, given that this industry generated $325 million in revenue in 2015 from merchandise, media rights, advertising, and tickets alone. In fact, according to the market research firm Eilers & Krejcik, the unregulated eSports betting market generated around $7.4 billion in betting turnover in 2016 and is expected to reach $23 billion by 2020. As …